Partially healed
by Elisewrites
Summary: After a deployment goes horrible wrong and June goes missing for a year, she comes back as someone who never feels good enough for anything. Maybe a certain speedy smirk can help her find her worth again? Rated M for safety
1. Chapter 1

_Author's note:_

_So, second time I try to write this story, this time I'll try my very best!_

_I know most of us want content based on the newest Avengers movies, but I can't help but miss Pietro! He was taken way too soon!_

_First chapter is only OC centred, hints of Avengers and Pietro will come in the second chapter._

_Very happy to receive any kind of feedback as it motivates me to write more and faster, I'm also open to wishes for plots! _

_Hope you enjoy!_

* * *

"You'll never make it, you're all too weak!" a harsh voice yelled from the side-line.

June ignored the higher officers yelling and the various grunts and huffs coming from her fellow soldiers as she continued to climb the wooden wall.

It had been raining all week and today was no exception. The field felt more like a pool of quicksand than a track, and her now muddy boots and uniform made it even harder to conquer the wall.

"Baker, here!" June looked up and grabbed the hand she was offered from a familiar figure on top of the wall. Both their hands were now covered in wet mud and sweat, and she almost slipped and fell as she was pulled up.

"Thanks, Thomps," she groaned as she got to the top. Just five more rounds and they'd be done for. The thought of this being the last day of phase 1B was the only thing keeping her going. "Five more rounds," she told herself and jumped off the wall.

At the end, her group had done eight more rounds. She was ready for it, but it had still been yet another trial for her to get through. Every day the last two months had been a trial.

* * *

Sergeant June Baker found herself standing at attention with the rest of her group after finishing the second part of phase 1 within the Special Forces Qualification Course. She had managed to get through phase 1A, the one month long prep course, and she felt sure that she had managed to pass this last part as well. The second month, phase 1B, had been the hardest month of her life. She knew that phase 1B was the evaluation phase where she would be tested, physically and mentally, to see if she was fit to start the proper training for the Special Forces. But she certainty couldn't have guessed how hard it would be. Countless hours of running, marching, swimming and mock missions had left her tired and with less weight on her frame.

But it would all be worth it, she reminded herself. To be a part of something bigger than her was her goal. To be able to go to bed every night knowing she had done something to protect the lives of others was something she longed for. And now she finally had the chance to start the journey towards that goal.

"Sergeant Baker!" June snapped back to reality, "Yes, Sir!" she yelled back.

"Lieutenant Colonel Miller will see you now," her captain told her and started walking towards his office.

June saluted the as she was let into his office, "Lieutenant Colonel, Sergeant Baker."

"Sergeant, sit," the greets her as she then sits down, "how did you feel this month went?" he asks her while looking down at what she assumed was her file.

"I gave it my all, sir. I focused on keeping me and my team sharp and ready for anything. Our overall scores as a team ranked us second place out of five, which isn't ideal, but not a complete loss I'd say. I have a lot to learn yet, but as I said, I gave it my all and I am more than motivated to improve," June explained as she tried to keep her heartbeat steady.

The nodded as he skimmed through her file, "Well, Sergeant, I've been told by your captain that you've done good, and from what I've seen in the field for myself you are a great soldier," he agreed.

June could feel herself getting excited from the praise she was given but tried not to jump to conclusions.

"However, and we see this with a lot of women who try out," June's face fell immediately, "in some situations you have shown to be more emotional than we wish for a Special Force soldier to be. Our soldiers need to guarantee us that they won't be held back because of over-emotional issues. Female soldiers are more likely to die in combat because they won't leave a dying soldier to be collected. While it's admirable, it can also mean a team is left with two soldiers down instead of one, and that's not a risk we can have on our team," the finished as he closed her file.

"I understand, Sir. Thank you for having me," she nodded slowly as she stood up.

"Don't let this discourage you, Sergeant. I know you have a lot to live up to, and as I said, you're a great soldier and you will do great work, unfortunately it won't be in the with the Special Force," the nodded and dismissed her as she saluted him.

* * *

That same evening June unlocked her apartment door. After her rejection she was told to pack her gear before she was sent on a flight back home. She was given the weekend off base to collect her thoughts and see her family before she would head back to her initial base from before the try-outs.

She had gotten a small studio apartment on the outskirt of New York a year after the alien invasion. Some parts of the town were still being reconstructed but her part was mainly alright, and luckily near a few coffee shops and stores. It was the best she could do on her salary, and she didn't need much seeing how often she was at the base and on missions.

She quickly closed the door behind her and threw the two bags she was carrying on the floor. She needed to get out of her uniform as fast as possible. Heading towards the bathroom she threw it off her, one piece at a time. As she got in the bathroom she stopped in front of the mirror and examined her face. The last two months she had done several more hours of training a day than she was used to, and the last month they had cut down their food significantly. Her green eyes were hollow and dull, her cheekbones were more noticeable, lips were cracked, and her blonde hair would take ages to detangle. As she inspected herself the tears that had been stinging her eyes since the Lieutenant Colonel's rejection finally found their escape. Soon the silent tears turned into painful sobs that shook her entire body so hard she had to hold onto the sink to keep standing. She remembered every time she had wanted to cry during the trials, and they all came to be let out at once as her stomach started to cramp. After a few long minutes, she finally found the strength to get herself in the shower and continued to sob in the stream of the cold water.

* * *

June didn't do much that weekend. She was supposed to use this time to rest and visit her family. But that was one thing June couldn't manage, and another thing she didn't really have. Since she joined the army at the age of 18, she practically had to be threatened to actually leave her base when she was given leave. In fact, she hadn't had one decent week off training or working, whether it was school or army, since her mother passed when June was 16. Her passing had of course affected June a great deal, but it was 6 years ago, and she had found her coping-mechanisms in distracting herself with hard work. The only family she had left, as she, and both her parents, were without siblings, was her father.

When the mentioned she had 'a lot to live up to' it was June's father he was referring to. Robert Baker was in his second year as the Vice Chief of Naval Operations in the US, earning him an admiral rank. He was the second in command in the entirety of the US Navy. Of course, this meant June never really saw, or spoke to, her father. He had never been a bad father, but he did have high expectations for his daughter, and June felt that she could never really live up to those expectations. And she didn't feel the need to call him about her failure at the Special Force, as she was sure the news would get to him eventually.

So, of course it was natural for June to show up at her base Saturday evening, the day after her return.

"Sergeant, I thought you'd be gone for longer than this," The security soldier exclaimed as she showed up to the window and scanned her card.

June smiled slightly as she readjusted her bags, "yeah well, I was getting worried Sergeant Felt would go easy on my crew if I was gone too long."

The soldier, Private Russel, chuckled as he opened the door, "I assume you have a plan for Monday morning already?"

"You bet I do," June grinned as she entered her home base. Despite currently feeling like a failure June always made it a point to never show that side of her, especially at base. If the higher officers showed signs of defeat, she could only imagine how the Privates would think of themselves.

As it was a Saturday evening, the base was relatively quiet as she expected. Most soldiers were off duty, except the security guards and other essential posts, and although she was sure many were either back home with their families or out on town, she was pretty sure she knew where she could find the four people she was after once she had left her bags at her room.

* * *

June hopped out of the Jeep and turned around to thank the Private responsible for tonight's drive from the base's nearest pub and back, "Thanks, Private. Don't let this lot have too much fun on the way back," she smirked as a group of drunken soldiers scrambled to get in. No matter how early it was, you could always count on a group of blackout drunk soldiers on a Saturday who hadn't touched a drink in 3 months.

As soon as she set foot in 'The Village', as the pub was called, she heard a few familiar laughs by the bar. She quickly turned on her signature smirk and walked towards the group of higher officers.

"I hope you're not celebrating my absence," she grinned as she draped her arm around Corporal Felt's shoulder.

"Baker!" the group exclaimed in unison. Felt almost spilled his pint as he tried to twist around to give her a soul crushing hug.

The group she was currently grinning at consisted of four higher officers from her unit. Two of them were Seragents, all at a shorter length of time than June, one was a Corporal, and the last one, their Platoon Sergeant. June was currently on her 14th month as a Sergeant and had been responsible for training soldiers to be ready for deployment for 8 months.

Corporal Nia Willis, a relatively quiet and always polished officer in her twenties, were responsible for the unit's weapon training. Willis could shoot anything, from any length, with any kind of weapon.

Sergeant Johnathan Norstad was the least pleased person to see June. Although the two of them could work professionally together, the Sergeant responsible for field training hadn't yet forgiven June for choosing Felt as her second in command 8 months ago. 8 months ago, June's now Platoon Sergeant Michael 'Mike' Collin was promoted from a first in command Sergeant in her unit to a Platoon Sergeant now responsible for several units. This automatically promoted June from second in command to first. Norstad had, naturally, assumed he would be promoted to take her place as he was the second 'oldest' Sergeant, but June had given that role to Felt. Sergeant Tyler Felt was more like a younger brother to June. Not only that, but their communication in the field worked seamlessly. After weeks of consideration, June had promoted Felt to take over her previous position, leaving Norstad quite spiteful.

"Let's get you a drink so you can tell us all about your last two months!" Felt grinned, happy to see her again.

"I'll have a drink, but I'm not in the mood to talk about the trials," June smiled weakly.

* * *

"I'm sorry it didn't work out, June. Those guys at the special force are really missing out," Mike said and patted her shoulder lightly. The group was well into their third round before Sergeant Collin found a moment alone with her.

June's smile twitched as she avoided his brown eyes, "it's fine, Mike. I'm not suited for the force, but it's alright, I'll focus on my current tasks."

"June," Mike sighed, "don't let it get to you. You're a damn good soldier and I won't have you believing you're not good enough to do whatever you set your mind to."

Mike and June were the only ones in the unit who addressed each other by their first names. He'd been her first in command and taught her most of what she knew about her duties as a Sergeant the last year. He had been impressed by her drive and skills and quickly promoted her to second in command once the previous Sergeant left the unit due to a back injury. As the months went by, they grew closer and closer, especially during late planning sessions in his office. Like many people who spent a lot of time together they soon found they were developing feelings for each other, but neither of them had made any move _yet_ due to there being strict rules against those kinds of relationship on base.

June finally looked up at him and smiled weakly, "I know. Just give me some time to get back to things."

Before Mike could answer back, Willis grabbed June's arm and practically dragged her towards the bar again, "let's get you some peanuts and another drink, you look like you haven't had any food in weeks, Baker," she mumbled in a tipsy slur as June chuckled.

* * *

"Baker, I understand you're disappointed about the trials. And as I've said several times, you are more than qualified and we're all shocked you didn't get in, but still very proud of you," Felt was on his way to start one of his many pep talks he'd been given June since her arrival on Saturday.

June sighed loudly, "exactly where are you going with this, _Sergeant_ Felt?" she asked, emphasising his rank to signal she was not in the mood for another friendly pep talk.

"I mean I like a good terror raid as much as any other higher officer, but are you doing this for their benefit or to let out some frustration?" he joked awkwardly.

June quirked an eyebrow at him as she secured her helmet, "Why, Sergeant, I have no idea what you're talking about" she grinned.

With that she turned her helmet light on and slammed open the door of her unit's sleeping facilities, "everyone up, this is a drill! Get your asses out of bed and get ready for combat. You have two minutes!" she yelled as she flickered the lights on and off. Felt marched in after her with a stereo blasting chaotic techno music on the highest volume.

Her unit, consisting of 15 privates scrambled out of their beds and hurried towards their lockers to get their gears on. June assumed it had been a while since their last night drill as many of them seemed out of practice.

3 minutes later they were all standing at attention outside their block. The cool March air hit them all hard at 4 am in the morning. Somewhere shivering already as they had forgotten the proper layers for winter drills in their panic to get ready on time.

June crossed her hands behind her back as Felt, Willis and Norstad inspected the soldiers, sending them back in if they were missing equipment with terrifying barks. Eventually, 8 minutes after the initial start, Felt was happy with the soldiers.

"Good morning Unit Four," he shouted with a deep voice.

"Good morning, Sergeant," the soldiers yelled back in unison.

"We have great news today; Sergeant Baker is back in charge. Let's give her a welcome back," Felt explained as he turned towards June.

"Welcome back, Sergeant," her unit roared.

June smirked at her soldiers. She was honestly proud of how far they had come since they came under her care eight months ago. She remembered the pure panic that shook them during their first night drill. It had taken them 25 minutes to even get dressed and outside.

Every unit trained for one year before they were ready to move on, and this would be the first one she had followed all the way until completion.

"Good morning, Unit Four," she greeted them, "I was hoping for a better start to the week. I gave you two minutes, but Sergeant Norstad's watch is telling me you spent a whole eight minutes getting ready for battle," she was walking back and forth but stopped at this and looked at them for a second, "So, Sergeant Norstad, how do we make sure this doesn't happen again?" she asked him.

Norstad took a step forward, "I'd say one round per extra minute in the obstacle course, Sergeant," he suggested.

June had to hold back a chuckle as she saw the looks on her unit's faces. If it was one thing she knew, it was that no one could ever enjoy a six round morning run on the obstacle course.

"You heard the Sergeant, get going! Six rounds!" June commanded.

Just as she was about to follow the unit and the other Sergeants, Mike came running towards her.

"June!" he called after her with a hard expression.

"Mike, what's up? Here to make sure I'm fit to lead again or?" she asked and met him halfway.

Mike didn't seem to have time for her suspicions and simply grabbed her by the arm and dragged her to his office.

"_Sergeant_, what is going on?" she asked once he let go of her and closed the door behind him.

"I've been sent a request," he explained and picked up a scribbled note from his desk, "a five man unit at the Sumy base were transporting supplies over a new an area and drove over a mine last evening." He handed June the note, hand shaking slightly.

June grabbed the note and started to read, "They're asking for me by name?" she questioned and looked up at him.

Mike nodded, "two moderate injuries, one serious and one death. They need another unit to take over. Lieutenant Colonel Miller heard about it and recommended you specifically," he finished as he sat down.

June's knuckles whitened as she held on to the note. She too wanted to sit down but she felt like her body was locked into a standing position.

"But he rejected me," she mumbled as she reread the note.

"He rejected you for the Special Force, not overseas missions," Mike explained, trying his best to keep calm. As her Sergeant he had to keep cool and not let his own emotions take over.

"The Sumy base is in Ukraine, right by the Russian border," she stated, more so to herself.

"Yes, but it's not supposed to be a high risk mission. The mine was a mistake, it won't happen again," Mike reassured her, but he was certain he was trying to reassure himself as well. "You'll be a supply unit, transporting supplies from the Sumy base to the different watch units," he continued, "you, Willis, Norstad and Felt will depart on Wednesday," he finished.

June tried to swallow the lump that was growing in her throat, "Mike, I don't know if I'm fit for this, Miller said so himself-"

"Stop!" Mike slammed his fist onto the desk, making June flinch slightly. "Stop doubting yourself, I've worked with you for over a year! The only reason the Sergeant Major is agreeing to take the 's recommendations is because of both his and my knowledge of what you're capable of," he was starting to breath heavier, "now stop arguing like you have a choice in the matter!"

They were both silent for a while before she dared to meet his eyes again, "Apologies, Sergeant. I will let my unit know to pack their equipment and get ready for Wednesday morning. I hope to receive an official report before that time," she stated in her most militant voice.

Mike sighed heavily and pressed his hands to his eyes, "June…" he started before looking back at her, "we need to put away," he paused as he tried to find the right words, "whatever is going on between us for this," he slowly stood up and walked towards her, "but I don't know if I can manage it anymore once you come back," he admitted as he wrapped his arms around her.

June let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding and clung onto him. They had shared hugs before, but nothing like this. This felt desperate, but intimate. She closed her eyes and inhaled his scent.

"You'll be back in no time," Mike reassured her.


	2. Chapter 2

_Author's note:_

_Whelp, so I lied, apparently the Avengers will come in the third chapter and Pietro in the forth. I'm just trying to set up an actual storyline before I throw them all in a mix. _

_Again, super happy for feedback! Thank you _Layla Mikaelson-Barnes for the rewiev! _Hope you enjoy!_

* * *

Walking out of the living container in the morning was a hard task in itself. June felt like she was being punched in the face by the freezing air every single day, even breathing through her nose hurt the first few breaths. The small base at Sumy was nothing to brag about, but it wasn't supposed to be big and fancy. The area consisted of 20 white containers that almost blended into the snow if you were far enough away. 10 hosting four beds each for different units, two contained food and equipment for the units and the other 8 were loaded with supplies meant to be shipped out to the 4 smaller watch units along the Russian border.

June, Felt, Willis and Norstad arrived two days ago in Cherkasy, a five hour drive from Sumy. They had all had mixed reactions when told the news about their new overseas mission. Norstad and Willis were surprised but both also seemed excited about the opportunity to prove themselves in the field. Felt seemed to have picked up on June's stressed state, despite her trying to hide it the best she could, but he too appeared to be intrigued about the news. Yet, they all felt the tension looming over them as they arrived at the Sumy base.

"Sergeant Baker, I see you are up and well," a tall dark-haired man greeted her.

"Captain," June saluted.

Captain Bell seemed like a very intimidating man at first glance. His broad shoulders and tall build filled out the winter uniform completely. June had met and seen many soldiers who had spent time on overseas missions, and like Captain Bell, they all had a kind of greyish look to their face. On base, one could always tell who they were. They walked as if they had no time to spare, yet as if it didn't really matter if they had a minute or a decade left. And they were always scanning the area, even when engaging with others.

But she had also experienced how kind and patient many of them were in certain situations. During drills and missions, they had no time for bullshit and expected only the best, but on time off they could show the kindest parts of themselves easily. Captain Bell was one of the good ones she had figured during the brief the previous evening as he assured her unit everything would go smoothly and that he'd heard good things about them.

"I trust your unit is ready for your first transport?" Bell asked as June caught up to walk alongside him.

"Yes, Sir. Sergeant Felt and I will go to the east unit, and Sergeant Willis and Sergeant Norstad take the north," June nodded as she quickened her pace once more to keep up with the Captain.

Bell nodded in agreement, "Very well, I expect to see you leave at 8.30. Unit 2 is a great unit and I am confident you will work well together."

* * *

June couldn't manage to enjoy breakfast that morning. She was going over everything that could go wrong on their first transport, and everything that could go wrong on their next transports after that. She knew the safety of her unit was on her shoulders and she was frantically scanning them from head to toe to check their status, all while trying to seem calm and confident.

"You have to eat at least some food before we head out," June commented and handed Willis a piece of buttered bread.

Willis looked up from her bowl of oatmeal and smiled sheepishly, "yeah, yeah, you know I'm not a fan of eating in the mornings," she said but accepted the toast.

"I need you all to be in top shape for this transport," June continued, "all eyes on the road, stay awake and ready for anything."

"I'll be fine, Sergeant, don't worry about me," Willis answered as she took a small bite.

"It's my job to worry about you guys, I even like to do it in my spare time," June chuckled lowly.

Norstad snorted, "You speak as if we are going into an active warfare."

June frowned, "I speak as if we're about to start our first overseas mission as a unit. If anything happens to you that's on me," she answered and looked him straight in the eyes, "and if you're not aware of the severity of _any_ overseas mission I will ask to have you sent back home, Sergeant."

As usual, Felt got his cue to mediate, "don't worry, Baker, we trust you and you can trust us. We'll make sure home base hear about how amazing their star unit is," he grinned at her.

June sighed loudly with a small smile, "you guys are going to be the ned of me."

* * *

"Unit 6," a redheaded woman smiled at June and her unit as they walked towards the two loaded vehicles.

"Lieutenant, we're ready when you are," June saluted seriously.

"Alright, Sergeant, I see you're all geared up and ready," the Lieutenant grinned, "who's going where?" she asked as she gestured towards the cars.

"Sergeant Norstad and Willis will go north. Sergeant Felt and I will join you at the east base," June answered.

"Great, Norstad, Willis you'll be going with Sergeant Lopez and Cook. You two – " she pointed at June and Felt, "will join me and Sergeant Nguyen," she finished as she walked towards the cars.

Sergeant Nguyen nodded towards them and they all nodded back.

June turned to Willis and Norstad, "Right, you guys keep your eyes open, memorize the route and stay safe," she ordered with a soft voice.

Willis smiled back at her and saluted, "You got it boss."

"Yes, ma'am," Norstad mumbled and saluted as well before they walked over to their designated car.

"You feeling good?" Felt asked her as they walked towards their own car.

"It's a low-risk mission, I'm not worried and neither should you be," June answered confidently.

She couldn't help but think about the unit they were meant to replace, but June knew this had been what she had trained for this since she first stepped into her first boot camp. This was just a mission to overcome to get to the next one.

Felt nodded with a grin as he opened the car door and jumped in, "I've got you by my side, why should I be worried?"

* * *

June groaned loudly as she came to her senses. Her heart was beating so hard she felt like she couldn't breathe. It didn't take her long to realize she was lying on her side against the window of the car. How long had she been out? She opened her eyes and was met with the stinging brightness of the snow. She tried to keep calm as she looked over to her right. Felt was lying motionless against her. His face was pale, and his lip was cut open.

"Felt, wake up," she said lowly and tried to nudge him with her shoulder. To her relief he made a pained cry as she did so.

"What happened?" he gasped.

June tried to recall what had happened, but she was left with nothing.

"We need to call for backup," she breathed and tried to unfasten her belt.

Every time she moved, she felt a sharp stabbing pain in her side. But she didn't have time to think about that now. As she managed to unbuckle herself, she reached towards her communicator.

"This is Unit 2.1, we require immediate backup. Two soldiers injured and two unknowns. I repeat, Unit 2.1 require immediate backup, over," she called into her com.

"This is Base 1, sending out immediate backup. What is the situation, I repeat, what is the situation, over," the com answers immediately.

Before June had the chance to answer back one of the car windows were smashed open and a smoke bomb was thrown in.

"June!" Felt cried as he tried his best to cover her with his body still buckled to the seat.

"We are under attack, we are under attack!" June yelled into the com before everything went dark.


	3. Chapter 3

_Author's note:_

_So, uploads will probably be not consistent as I'm in uni and exams are happening very soon. But on the other hand, writing a new chapter is a great way to procrastinate when I have 3 essays to write :)))_

_This chapter was really fun to write as I've finally brought some actual Avengers into the mix!_

_Feedback makes me so excited and super happy! So thank you soo much to _Layla Mikaelson-Barnes and Dally'sTUFFfor the reviews!

_Hope you enjoy!_

* * *

She didn't know how long she had been out or where she was. All she knew was that something was wrong. As she didn't have the strength to open her eyes, June scanned her body the best she could. The intense pulsating pain in her body made it hard to even separate her arm from her leg. As she concentrated more and more on coming back to her senses, she could feel herself lying on something soft. Why would she be lying on a bed she asked herself. The longer she tried to get back into her body the more she could feel. Her body felt like she had been thrown off a building. Every inch ached. Why was she in so much pain? She suddenly became aware of a soft rhythmic beeping sound not too far from her. She tensed as she focused on the sound and slowly realized the only possible place she could be and why she was there.

The realization seemed to spark a jolt through her body and she finally found the strength to open her eyes wide and let out a pained gasp, "Felt," she screamed with a rough voice.

She was immediately pushed back down on the bed by two figures wearing full body suits.

June screamed once more and tried to fight the men off her, "get off!"

"Sergeant Baker, calm down," a deep voice commanded.

June immediately recognized the voice and stiffened, "Lieutenant Colonel Miller?" she asked and tried to look around to see if she was hearing voices in her head.

It was then she noticed that she was not in a hospital, not a regular one at least. She found herself in something that resembled a glass room inside another brightly lit and windowless room. The glass room was filled with monitors hooked up to her and a smaller non-glass room she assumed was a bathroom. Outside of the glass room there were several computers, desks, files and people. One of them, was Miller.

Miller stood right by the glass with his arms behind his back. He seemed just as June remembered him from little over a week ago. Or was it a week ago?

"What happened? Where am I and where is Felt and the others?" June asked with a shaky voice.

The two men in suits finally let go of her as one stepped back and the other checked that her IV and monitors were still in place.

"You're in a secret clinical facility of the Special Forces, Sergeant Baker. Your unit was attacked, and an enemy force took you hostage," Miller explained from outside the glass, "a Special Force unit was able to locate you a day later and retrieve you back to safety."

June felt her heart race faster. She was taken? Why couldn't she remember anything after the smoke bomb in the car?

"What about the rest of my unit?"

Miller clenched his jaw slightly as he let out a slow sigh, "Sergeant Willis and Norstad were not involved. I regret to tell you that Lieutenant May and Sergeant Nguyen died from the crash."

"And Felt?" she questioned, not taking her eyes of the man.

"His condition is stable for the moment. He, like you, were experimented on by the enemy."

Relief washed over her, and her shoulders relax slightly. Her unit was safe and alive and she, with guilt, felt grateful it wasn't them having sat in the front of the car.

"Wait," she blinked confused, "experiments?"

It was then an older man dressed in a brown suit walked closer to the glass, "we believe that the enemy used you and Sergeant Felt to experiment on, yes," he answered.

June turned towards the man, "what kind of experiments?"

"We are not sure yet, but it seems the experiments were meant to create superhumans."

June frowned slightly. Superhumans? She'd heard the stories, and seen the news reports, of Captain America. Heck, it even turned out that Thor and Asgard was real. But _her_ being experimented on to become a superhuman on her first overseas mission?

June let out a shaky laugh, "superhuman? You must have made a mistake. Who are you?" she asked the man in the suit.

"This is Doctor List. He has extensive knowledge in the field of enhanced persons, and I can assure you, Sergeant that this is no mistake," Miller answered firmly.

"From what we have gathered so far, you seem to have developed an increased rate of healing," List explained as he seemed to move as close to the glass as possible to examine her.

June looked at him confused, "increased rate of healing? My entire body feels like it's burning," she answered, refusing to believe the information they were feeding her.

"Sergeant, when we found you, you had two broken ribs, a bullet in your thigh, and a bloody head injury," List commented.

She snapped her head towards him, "what?" she mumbled as she tried to sit up but was quickly showed back into the bed, a little too hard she thought. She could remember the pain in her side when she woke up in the car, but not getting shot.

"As I said, when we found you, you were in a bad condition and had a serious amount of blood loss. But now, a few days later, your wounds look like they're weeks old," List explained. The way he seemed to be unable to grin at the notion sent chills through her body.

" I don't understand," she whispered lowly and looked down at her thighs currently covered by a hospital gown. With trembling hands, she inched them towards the hem of the gown and slipped it upwards until a distinct, pink scar was revealed on her right thigh. It almost looked like the old scar her father had on his calf. She felt herself unable to believe what she was seeing. And the more she examined the scar the more she could feel a dreaded sense of panic and dizziness hit her all at once. Before she knew it, she was passed out by the shock itself.

* * *

**Wednesday, 9th of April 2014: five days after the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D**

Natasha Romanoff had to concentrate not to smirk as she looked sternly at the group of powerful men in front of her, "you're not gonna put any of us in prison," she started, "you know why?"

"Do enlighten us," one of the men in suit answered.

"Because you need us. The world is dangerous, and we might not be what you traditionally want, but we're the best ones to do the job," she finished as she stood up and headed towards the door with journalists and cameras close after her.

She was just about to get in her car when another woman dressed in a navy uniform approached her, "Miss Romanoff, I'm here on behalf of Admiral Baker," she explained lowly.

Natasha quirked an eyebrow as she continued to get into the car, "I just spoke to him," she answered and grabbed for the car door.

The dark-haired woman quickly grabbed the door stopping the now ex shield agent from closing it, "this is about something else. He needs your help," she explained with as much of a neutral expression as she could manage.

Natasha sighed lowly as she let go of the car door, "listen, I'm not in the mood to help anyone with anything at the moment. Especially not one of the decorated men that just threatened to jail me," she smiled sweetly before she slammed the door and sped off, leaving the woman at the parking lot.

* * *

**Friday, 11th of April 2014:**

"Come on, I've seen her punch three guys at the same time. I don't know how it's possible, but she did! She can definitively handle if you hulked out as foreplay!" Tony Stark exclaimed as he threw his hands up in amazement.

Bruce Banner rolled his eyes but didn't turn around to address his eccentric associate and kept scribbling down notes as he was looking through a microscope, "Firstly, I'm not comfortable with you talking about this. Secondly, I am not interested in her in that way and she is not interested in me in that way either. We barely know each other," he sighed.

Tony grinned as he popped a raspberry into his mouth and chewed loudly, "I heard she needed to lay low after the whole Hydra situation, I could suggest she lies low on you if you need me to be your wingman?"

This made Bruce turn around and look at Tony in disbelief, "you are the least professional person I have ever met," he announced with a careful smile as he tried not to encourage him by laughing.

Despite how much Tony's constant nagging of Bruce's sex life was getting tiresome he was happy he had a secure place to stay and to do some actual work. After the news of the Shield and Hydra expose, he had been sleeping badly as he was sure both the government and Hydra would probably love to get their hands on the Hulk.

"I will take that as a compliment," Tony beamed still chewing loudly, "but I am running out of raspberries and I don't think I've seen you eat since breakfast. Let's order in, what do you fancy? Chinese, Italian, Mexican, oh Swedish?" Tony was starting to ramble as he practically grabbed Bruce to drag him with.

As they both managed to get to the main living area Jarvis reported, "Colonel Rhodes is asking to see you, sir. He is accompanied by Admiral Baker and his subordinate Lieutenant Johnson."

The two men stopped in their tracks, Bruce gave Tony a worried glance as Tony shrugged.

"Alright, send them in," Tony instructed and walked towards the bar to pour himself a glass.

Not long after Rhodes walked in with the Admiral and Lieutenant right behind, "Tony, I'm sorry to burst in like this, but-" Rhodes was quickly cut off by dark-haired Lieutenant.

"Mr. Stark, thank you for taking the time to speak to us. We are here, undisclosed, to ask you for your help in an overseas mission," she declared seriously.

Admiral Robert Baker wore a grave expression as he walked further into the room. The man was getting older and the many years he had served in the Navy had left many marks on his face. Yet, there was something about his form and face that told both Tony and Bruce that there was something more that was bothering him. So, Tony tried his best not to make one of his many humorous comments.

"Admiral Baker," Tony nodded in his direction, "I believe it's been some time since our last meeting," he commented, remembering a past encounter at a weapon display meeting during his earlier years, before Iron Man.

Robert nodded back, "I believe it has. But I'm afraid I won't have time for pleasantries today. This matter is particularly pressing," he continued and turned towards Johnson.

Johnson quickly handed Tony a folder which he reluctantly accepted with his free hand. She was about to explain when she suddenly looked over at Bruce, "as I said, this is extremely sensitive information," she commented.

Bruce put up his hands and moved to leave the room, but before he could take another step Tony stopped him, "no need to worry, Mr. Banner has proven he can be trusted more than many other high ranking officers as we found out a few days ago," he challenged the Lieutenant.

Johnson looked back at Robert who nodded for her to continue, "two of our soldiers have been taken during a supply transport between bases near Sumy, Ukraine," she explained and waited for Tony to open the folder.

Tony almost slapped the folder onto Bruce's chest, "Jarvis, pull up everything you have on the Sumy base," he commanded. Seconds after the group was surrounded by holographic images, texts and videos regarding the base.

Rhodes shot Tony a side eye which he effortlessly ignored.

Robert looked around the images of the secret base and sighed "why does this not surprise me?"

Tony smiled sheepishly as he scanned through the information, "why are you coming to me for this?"

"We have information that, combined with the newly exposed Hydra Intel, leads us to believe the two soldiers were taken by Hydra," Johnson explained vaguely.

Tony shook his finger at her, "no, no, if you want _my_ help then I'm not supposed to have to ask for more information," he said as he quirked an eyebrow at her.

Again, Johnson turned towards Robert who again nodded back, "tell him everything," he commanded.

"About a month ago Sergeant June Baker was rejected from the Special Forces after completing part 1A and 1B in the Special Force Qualifications Course under the reasoning that she was too emotional in the field," Johnson explained.

As June's name was mentioned her photo, stats, and history popped up in front of Tony. He looked closely at the young woman who smiled back at him. Her blonde hair was neatly gathered in a low bun, and her green eyes and big smile were sparkling with excitement. She looked too young to be sent on an overseas mission, but realized it was an old photo as it was dated back three years when she was 18 years old and probably newly joined. He flicked his wrist slightly and a more recent picture revealed the same young woman, but she seemed to have less excitement in her expression this time.

"Shortly after Sergeant Baker was sent back to her home base a transport unit in Sumy hit a mine, which resulted in three soldiers injured and one passing. The same evening Special Force Miller recommended her and her unit to take over the compromised unit as it was characterised as a one-time incident. Then, during their first transport in Sumy, their vehicle was attacked, leaving two killed soldiers and two taken, Sergeant Baker and Sergeant Tyler Felt," Johnson finished, but it still seemed like she wasn't telling them all.

Bruce turned to look at the photo Tony were examining, and it instantly hit him as he saw the woman's face. He looked back at the Admiral and realized why he looked particularly troubled by this case.

"She's your daughter," he stated softly.

Robert's face fell as all eyes in the room landed on him. Their urgent visit finally made sense to Tony and Bruce. Of course, Johnson was aware of this fact. She had been there with him as he heard the news. Seen the disbelief in his eyes as he asked once again if they were sure it was _his_ June Baker, and how June and Baker were both very common names. He had been troubled from the evening he got the news that she and her unit was recommended to take over the compromised unit. Heck, he had worried about June from the first day she stepped into boot camp. He never did seem to find time to speak to her about it properly. Maybe it was the fact that he had spent most of his lifetime in service, and his generation wasn't the best at talking about feelings and worries? Or maybe he hadn't yet gotten over the loss of his wife. All he could think of now was how much he regretted not taking the time to see her as much and how he wasn't going to lose her too.

Tony felt the pressure to fill the silence that had draped itself over them, "but this still doesn't answer why you think this is Hydra's work."

Johnson turned her attention towards the billionaire, "According to the Hydra and Shield Intel, Miller is an agent of Hydra. And he disappeared the same day the list was released."


End file.
